


An exercise of self-restraint

by LivingInABox



Series: Zhan Yao is disaster gay [1]
Category: S.C.I.谜案集 | S.C.I. Mystery (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Get Together, M/M, Zhan Yao is disaster gay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:21:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25595698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LivingInABox/pseuds/LivingInABox
Summary: Zhan Yao likes Bai Yutong’s muscles.--The first time Zhan Yao saw Bai Yutong cooking without his shirt, he stubbed his toe on a chair and inhaled in a sharp breath for various reasons.
Relationships: Bai Yutong/Zhan Yao
Series: Zhan Yao is disaster gay [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1862569
Comments: 20
Kudos: 148





	An exercise of self-restraint

**Author's Note:**

> I’m not accustomed to Chinese names, titles and honorifics, please let me know if anything is wrong! 
> 
> I don’t know what this is, but I just couldn’t get over Gao Hanyu’s shower scene in ep 15 because hot damn--so here I am. Enjoy!

The first time Zhan Yao saw Bai Yutong cooking without his shirt, he stubbed his toe on a chair and inhaled in a sharp breath for various reasons. 

“Are you not awake yet?” Bai Yutong snorted, turning to place a cup of coffee on the counter for him. 

The cat printed apron that Zhan Yao had never once worn hugged his chest, effectively hiding nipples and abs, but dear lord, Zhan Yao almost choked on sharp collar bones and pectoral lines and fucking _biceps_. 

Bai Yutong’s shorts was covered, and somehow that just made it insanely obscene, like he was naked under there.

Naked Bai Yutong serving Zhan Yao breakfast wasn’t an image he needed on a Monday morning, no. 

So he chugged scathing hot coffee and demolished his eggs and ham instead. And most definitely, he wasn’t going to think about this everytime he was in the shower.

By the time Bai Yutong dropped him off at the university for his first class, he was back in his white suit and black tie. And Zhan Yao was a little bit more composed.

He made through all of his lectures without triggering a Freudian slip despite thinking about ‘naked apron biceps’ for the entire day.

\--

Bai Yutong must have taken Zhan Yao’s muted reaction from the first time as permission to continue doing it. 

Because Zhan Yao swore he’d never bother with a shirt anymore, choosing to saunter around the apartment like he was at his own place. 

No sir, this was Zhan Yao’s apartment, and he absolutely did not want Bai Yutong doing whatever triceps exercise that he did on the arm of the couch, without a shirt.

He had two piles of essays to sort through before tomorrow, but Bai Yutong, with his back muscle tensing and unending soft grunts, was really really distracting.

Zhan Yao was straying from the printed words to golden skin, and he was rereading the same paragraph for the fifth time.

It was mildly concerning that not even a psychoanalysis of the Zodiac killer, written by one of his best students, could combat this--this temporary lack of rational thinking.

So he stifled a frustrated groan and smacked the back of Bai Yutong’s head with his stack of paper. 

Bai Yutong flipped around in indignation. “What did you do that for, damn cat?!”

“You’re being annoying. Go away and let me do my work in peace,” he said, feigning calmness with eyes glued to the paper despite not taking in a word.

“How am I being annoying? I was leaving you alone to read, you made me lose count, and now I have to do it all over again,” Bai Yutong said, definitely scowling darkly.

Before Zhan Yao could make something up to prevent a repeat, he huffed loudly, “Ugh, forget it, I’m going for a run.” 

Zhan Yao lifted his head at that, brows furrowed as he very pointedly only stared at Bai Yutong’s face. “Wearing that?” he asked.

Bai Yutong looked at him like he was speaking nonsense. “What? Now my clothing choice annoys you?” 

There was nothing wrong with his white gym shorts aside from being a bit tight around the curves, but that was a whole other problem that Zhan Yao wasn’t going to touch with a ten-foot pole.

“Put on a shirt unless you want to get arrested for public indecency.”

Bai Yutong scoffed. “Who dares to arrest a Bai?” 

He did put on a shirt before leaving though, and Zhan Yao settled back into his couch, satisfied with a victory.

\--

Then Bai Yutong went and got shot in the arm, chasing after a common thug. Just when Zhan Yao left his side for one moment to do some research. 

That reckless and overconfident _mouse_ was going to bring Zhan Yao to an early grave.

At the moment, however, Zhan Yao bursted into autopsy to find Bai Yutong, sitting on the dissecting table as Gongsun painstakingly wove stitches onto his skin.

“Xiao Bai, are you okay?!” Zhan Yao marched to his side with heart pounding, eyes immediately flickered to the blood stained jacket and shirts then to the wound.

“The bullet only nicked him,” Gongsun supplied helpfully, drawing away on his rolling chair to look for bandages in their first aid kit. “Deep enough for stitching but nothing too serious. Don’t worry.”

“I’m fine, it didn’t hurt.” Bai Yutong’s other hand came to rest on Zhan Yao’s nape and his fingers caressed the hair there reassuringly. 

Zhan Yao nodded, letting a soft exhale escape him before his worries turned into outrage and he punched Bai Yutong’s chest with his fist. 

“How could you be so careless? The great SCI Chief being shot by some purse snatcher, imagine the gossip.” He channeled his most effective disapproving-professor look at Bai Yutong.

“Hey, I was protecting a civilian, not my fault thieves these days carry handguns,” Bai Yutong defended. 

Gongsun, perhaps in his attempt to stop the meaningless argument, chimed in as he finished wrapping the injury, “There, all done. Take it easy for a couple of days Bai Sir.”

“Thanks,” Bai Yutong and Zhan Yao said in unison, earning a small rare smile from the medical examiner. 

“Just be more careful next time, would you?” Zhan Yao turned back to Bai Yutong, placated enough for now. 

Which meant he finally realized how close he was standing to a half naked Bai Yutong--how close he was to full on tight abs and perky nipples that Zhan Yao was unquestionably not peeking at.

He withdrew his hand on Bai Yutong’s shoulder like it was burnt, but Bai Yutong was oblivious to his internal struggles, only sighed dejectedly.

“He ruined my favorite jacket.”

“I’ll buy you another one,” Zhan Yao said, proud that his voice didn’t shake.

“Alright, you said it. I’m holding you to that, kitty.” 

The blinding smile he received forced him to clear his throat before continuing, “Let me grab your change of clothes in the office.”

“No need, let’s just go together--” Bai Yutong pushed off from the table. 

“Absolutely not.” Zhan Yao glared, halting him by stepping in his path. 

They had _women_ in their office. How could Bai Yutong lack so much tact? Unbelievable. 

“Stay,” he ordered before stomping out of autopsy. He wasn’t thinking about how their chests were inches away from touching. Nope. Not at all.

\--

He was dealing just fine with this new tendency of Bai Yutong, mostly through severe avoidance and changing his line of sight to anywhere above the neck line. And taking a lot of cold showers with solo sessions.

But the last fucking straw was when Bai Yutong crawled into bed wearing only his boxer brief. 

Granted that they had a long day at work, and Zhan Yao could understand the urge to ditch everything and just go to sleep. 

He didn’t even mind sharing the bed because he knew Bai Yutong was all bruised up from the fight earlier.

But how can he sleep when Bai Yutong, all tantalizing skin and enticing muscles, was radiating warmth and he was lying _so close_ that Zhan Yao ached to reach out and touch. 

Just to see if his chest was that firm, to hear what kind of sound he’d make if Zhan Yao brushed fingers over the dark nubs of skin and rows of abs, if he bit with his teeth and scratched lines with his nails.

Zhan Yao turned to his side, tucking into himself because getting a hard on while sleeping next to his very-much-naked best friend wasn’t the best idea. 

He did breathing exercise, and entertained the thought of going to the bathroom to take care of it, but Bai Yutong shifted and curled around the shape of Zhan Yao’s body, not enough to make contact, but Zhan Yao felt him just all the same.

Zhan Yao scooted further to the edge only to have Bai Yutong following.

“Are you doing this on purpose, Bai Yutong?” Zhan Yao asked, voice hoarse with ire to disguise everything else he was feeling.

“Doing what?” Hot breaths wisped against his neck as Bai Yutong chuckled.

Zhan Yao sat up, tired, and so goddamn horny. “This--this thing--you know, the thing that you’ve been doing!” 

He waved his hand vaguely in the air, trying to find words to describe how Bai Yutong being a hunk was damaging his sanity without inflating Bai Yutong’s ego.

Bai Yutong shuffled to his back now, pillowing on his right arm with bicep bulging and tattoo lining on it, and Zhan Yao had a startling urge to kiss the words etched there. 

Something on his face must have given him away because Bai Yutong said simply, “You know, all you have to do is ask, and I’d let you do _anything_ to me.” 

At that he trailed his other hand down his chest, casually pushing away the blanket as he went further down, drawing Zhan Yao’s eyes along before stopping right by the v line of his hips.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Zhan Yao insisted, swallowing hard. 

“Come on, kitty, I’ve seen the stares. You’re not subtle.” 

Bai Yutong tugged on his shirt, bringing him close. And blood was rushing both to Zhan Yao's head and all the way down there, and he couldn't help but comply, settling snugly beside Bai Yutong’s body to feel rock hard thigh pressing against his own. 

“I wouldn’t stare if you didn’t walk around half-naked all the damn time,” Zhan Yao bristled as Bai Yutong’s hand cupped his cheek.

“I wouldn’t walk around half-naked all the time if you didn’t stare.” 

“So you _are_ doing it on purpose!”

“I don’t know what you mean,” Bai Yutong echoed with an infuriating grin.

It was rather unfair that by this point, anything Bai Yutong did only made Zhan Yao want to kiss him. 

Kiss him. Bite him. Claw on his skin. Mark him. 

Then his thumb swiped at Zhan Yao’s lips slowly like he understood. 

“So tell me, _kitten_ , what do you want?” he asked. “I’ll give it all to you.”

Zhan Yao sucked in a breath, there was only so much he could withstand being a mere human with needs.

“You. I want to touch you," he muttered finally. _I want to claim you_ , he didn’t say. 

Then he gave in, dipping his head to close the distance between their lips as Bai Yutong’s arms wrapped around him. 

Guess they were doing this then.

\--

+

In the Bai family group chat, consisting of Bai mama, Bai Qingtang, with the recent addition of Bai Chi, Bai Yutong sent a text.

It said: ‘Mission accomplished. You all owed me money, he totally has a kink for muscles.’ 

Underneath, there was a selfie, taken in the soft lighting from the early morning hours. It showed a black mop of hair underneath Bai Yutong’s chin with no identifiable characteristic. The implication was enough.

Bai Yutong muted his phone after and pressed a kiss onto Zhan Yao’s head, falling back into bliss and lazy dawdling until he had to cook breakfast. 

Best idea ever.


End file.
